Film laminator for cell phones

ABSTRACT

According to the utility model, there is provided a film laminator for cell phones, useful for film lamination on a surface of a cell phone, including: a cell phone fixing plate, on which a through hole for receiving the cell phone is established, and a top surface of which is a horizontal face; with at least one position limiting plate for abutting the cell phone within the through hole being also fixed on the top surface. The film laminator for cell phones further includes: a film laminating plate for fixing a cell phone film; one end of which is hinged to the cell phone fixing plate, and the other end of which is movable freely so that the film laminating plate is bonded with the top surface of the cell phone fixing plate. With respect to the film laminator for cell phones according to the utility model, because the position limiting plate is provided on the cell phone fixing plate, the surface of the cell phone to which a film is to be attached can handily be kept in flush with the top surface of the cell phone fixing plate. Upon film lamination, the film laminating plate can contact with the top surface of the cell phone fixing plate and the surface of the cell phone to which a film is to be attached at the same time, so that the stress that is laid on it in the course of film lamination is very even, and a good effect of film lamination is obtained.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §§ 119(e) and 120 toapplication Ser. No. 14/945,189 filed Nov. 18, 2015, now U.S. Pat. No.10,076,894; application Ser. No. 62/641,556 filed Mar. 12, 2018, nowexpired; application Ser. No. 16/104,322 filed Aug. 17, 2018, now U.S.Pat. No. 10,336,048; application Ser. No. 16/454,117, filed Jun. 27,2019, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,723,111; application Ser. No. 16/916,827,filed Jun. 30, 2020, now abandoned; and application Ser. No. 17/230,545,filed Apr. 14, 2021.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The utility model relates to a manufacturing technology of cell-phoneperipheral products, especially a film laminator for cell phones, andpertains to the field of film laminating equipments.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

With the development of society and the improvement of living standards,more and more people start to use portable electronic devices, such ascell phones, tablet computers, etc. For ease of reading, the screen sizeof portable electronic devices is gradually increased, and people becomemore and more aware about screen protection. In general, people willattach a layer of protective film to the screen of a portable digitaldevice. However, with the increasing frequency of use, the increasing offriction and a scratch from outside, the protective film is very easy tobe destroyed, and then re-lamination of film is required.

In prior art, a manual mode is usually employed for conducting filmlamination on a digital product. That is, after three layers oflaminated films are aligned with the screen of an electronic device, anouter film in the first layer is peeled off firstly; next, an end of aprimary film is attached to the screen of the electronic device, and airunder the primary film is squeezed out slowly so that the primary filmis attached to the screen of the electronic device; finally, aprotective film in the outermost layer is peeled off. As regards themanual film lamination in prior art, the following circumstances areliable to occur: laminated films are not easy to align, bubbles areproduced easily, and so on. In a word, the film laminating quality ofmanual film lamination is difficult to be ensured.

Another mode in prior art is to conduct film lamination by use of aroller, but its roller facility has a complex manufacturing process anda high cost, and it can only be used to stick a flexible thin film.

SUMMARY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

According to embodiments of the utility model, there is provided a filmlaminator for cell phones that has a low cost, a good film laminatingquality and is usable to stick a hard thin film.

A film laminator for cell phones provided by an embodiment of theutility model, useful for film lamination on a surface of a cell phone,includes: a cell phone fixing plate, on which a through hole forreceiving the cell phone is established, and a top surface of which is ahorizontal face; with at least one position limiting plate for abuttingthe cell phone within the through hole being also fixed on the topsurface;

the film laminator for cell phones further includes: a film laminatingplate for fixing a cell phone film; one end of which is hinged to thecell phone fixing plate, and the other end of which is movable freely sothat the film laminating plate is bonded with the top surface of thecell phone fixing plate.

As for the film laminator for cell phones stated above, wherein, twosets of positioning holes are provided on the cell phone fixing plate;and the position limiting plate is two, each of which is fixed onto thecell phone fixing plate by means of one set of positioning holes.

As for the film laminator for cell phones stated above, wherein, agroove for fixing the cell phone film is provided on the film laminatingplate, and is established on a face of the film laminating plate forbonding with the cell phone fixing plate.

As for the film laminator for cell phones stated above, wherein, thecell phone film includes a first outer film, a primary film and a secondouter film that are stacked sequentially, a separating strip is providedat an end of the first outer film, an end of the second outer film isjointed to the film laminating plate, and an adhering sheet is arrangedbetween the first outer film and the primary film.

As for the film laminator for cell phones stated above, wherein, whenthe film laminating plate is bonded with the top surface of the cellphone fixing plate, the groove coincides with the through hole.

As for the film laminator for cell phones stated above, wherein, theshape of the through hole is the same as the shape of profile of thecell phone.

As for the film laminator for cell phones stated above, wherein, each ofthe position limiting plates is located at an edge of the through hole,and each of the position limiting plates covers a part of the throughhole.

As for the film laminator for cell phones stated above, wherein, thefilm laminating plate is a transparent construct.

As for the film laminator for cell phones stated above, wherein, anexhaust through hole is established on the film laminating plate, andcommunicates with the bottom of the groove.

As for the film laminator for cell phones stated above, wherein, thecell phone fixing plate is a hard paper board, and its thickness is inthe range of 2.5 to 7 mm; the film laminating plate is a hard paperboard, and its thickness is in the range of 0.5 to 1.5 mm; the positionlimiting plate is a PET board, and its thickness is in the range of 0.1to 0.5 mm.

With respect to the film laminator for cell phones according to theutility model, because the position limiting plate is provided on thecell phone fixing plate, the surface of the cell phone to which a filmis to be attached can handily be kept in flush with the top surface ofthe cell phone fixing plate. Upon film lamination, the film laminatingplate can contact with the top surface of the cell phone fixing plateand the surface of the cell phone to which a film is to be attached atthe same time, so that the stress that is laid on it in the course offilm lamination is very even, and bubbles are not liable to occur. Thus,a good effect of film lamination is obtained. Furthermore, as the filmlaminating plate is hinged to the cell phone fixing plate, and a precisecorresponding relationship between the cell phone film and the cellphone to which a film is to be attached can be obtained, the accuracy ofalignment of the laminated film is guaranteed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to illustrate the technical solution in the embodiments of theutility model or in prior art more clearly, the drawings necessary fordescription of the embodiments or existing technologies will be brieflyintroduced below; it is obvious that the drawings as described below areonly related to some embodiments of the utility model, and based onthese drawings, other drawings can also be obtained by those ordinarilyskilled in the art without any inventive work.

FIG. 1 is a structural view illustrating a film laminator for cellphones according to an embodiment of the utility model;

FIG. 2 is a top perspective view illustrating a cell-phone fixing plateof a film laminator for cell phones according to an embodiment of theutility model;

FIG. 3 is a bottom perspective view illustrating a cell-phone fixingplate of a film laminator for cell phones according to an embodiment ofthe utility model;

FIG. 4 is a view illustrating a service state of a cell-phone fixingplate of a film laminator for cell phones according to an embodiment ofthe utility model;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view illustrating a film laminating process of afilm laminator for cell phones according to an embodiment of the utilitymodel;

FIG. 6 is a structurally schematic view illustrating a film laminatorfor cell phones according to another embodiment of the utility model;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view illustrating a film laminating process of afilm laminator for cell phones according to another embodiment of theutility model;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view illustrating pressing of a cell-phone film ofa film laminator for cell phones according to another embodiment of theutility model.

FIG. 9 is a side schematic view illustrating an alternate embodiment ofthe protective film applicator.

FIG. 10 is a side schematic view illustrating the protective filmassembly in an alternative embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a top schematic view illustrating an alternate embodiment ofthe protective film applicator.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, technical solution in embodiments of the utility model willbe described in a clearly and fully understandable way in conjunctionwith accompanied drawings in embodiments of the utility model. It isobvious that the described embodiments are just a part but not all ofthe embodiments of the utility model. Based on the embodiments in theutility model, those ordinarily skilled in the art can obtain otherembodiment(s), without any inventive work, which come(s) within thescope sought for protection by the utility model.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 , a film laminator for cell phones is providedby the embodiment, and useful for film lamination on a surface of a cellphone. The film laminator for cell phones according to the embodimentincludes: a cell-phone fixing plate 1 and a film laminating plate 2. Atop surface of the cell-phone fixing plate 1 is a horizontal face, andin the cell-phone fixing plate, there is established a through hole 10for receiving a cell phone, so that edges of the cell phone fit in withsidewalls of the through hole 10. On the top surface of the cell-phonefixing plate 1, there is further provided at least one position limitingplate 11 for abutting a cell phone within the through hole 10. Theposition limiting plate 11 is fixed to the top surface of the fixingplate 1, and is useful for abutting a surface of the cell phone to whicha film is to be attached, so as to make sure that the surface of thecell phone to which a film is to be attached lies in the same plane asthe top surface of the cell-phone fixing plate 1. In general, theposition limiting plate 11 serves to abut an edge of the surface of thecell phone 3 to which a film is to be attached, and as such, not onlythe normal film lamination is not affected, but also the surface of thecell phone to which a film is to be attached can be assured of lying inthe plane on which the top surface is located. The film laminating plate2 is useful for fixing a cell-phone film 30, one end of the filmlaminating plate 2 is hinged to the cell-phone fixing plate 1, and theother end of it is movable freely so that the film laminating plate 2 isbonded with the top surface of the cell-phone fixing plate 1. Theposition limiting plate 11 is usually two, which are generally designedto be at both sides of the through hole 10; of course, the positionlimiting plate 11 may also be one. In the case that one positionlimiting plate is adopted, the position limiting plate 11 is usuallyU-shaped. This can make sure that the surface of the cell phone to whicha film is to be attached fully abuts the position limiting plate 11 aswell.

When embodiments of the utility model are in use, because the positionlimiting plate 11 is provided on the cell-phone fixing plate 1, thesurface of the cell phone 3 to which a film is to be attached canhandily be kept in flush with the top surface of the cell-phone fixingplate 1. Upon film lamination, the film laminating plate 2 can contactwith the top surface of the cell-phone fixing plate 1 and the surface ofthe cell phone 3 to which a film is to be attached (as shown in FIG. 4 ,which is usually the screen of the cell phone 3) at the same time, sothat the stress that is laid on it in the course of film lamination isvery even, and bubbles are not liable to occur. Thus, a good effect offilm lamination is obtained. Embodiments of the utility model areespecially adaptable for sticking hard cell-phone thin films, such asglass films, thin films of toughened glass, sapphire films, or the like.As the top surface of the cell-phone fixing plate 1 lies in the sameplane as the surface of the cell phone 3 to which a film is to beattached, when a hard thin film is stuck on, there is no such case whereit is splintered due to uneven stress laid on it. Thus, the stickingquality is guaranteed. Furthermore, as the film laminating plate 2 ishinged to the cell-phone fixing plate 1, and a precise correspondingrelationship between the cell-phone film 30 and the cell phone 3 towhich a film is to be attached can be obtained, the accuracy ofalignment of the laminated film is guaranteed.

On the basis of the above embodiment, a hanging hole 15 is furtherprovided on the cell-phone fixing plate 1 in the embodiment. The hanginghole 15 is generally located at a terminal of the cell-phone fixingplate 1, and is usually in a long strip shape. A notch may also beprovided on a side wall of the hanging hole 15, so that the cell-phonefixing plate 2 is kept in balance in a state of hanging.

On the basis of the above embodiment, two sets of positioning holes 12are provided on the cell-phone fixing plate 1; the position limitingplate 11 is two, each of which is fixed onto the cell-phone fixing plate1 by means of a set of positioning holes 12. With the design ofpositioning holes 12, position fixing accuracy of fixing the positionlimiting plate 11 onto the cell-phone fixing plate 1 can be assured, anda good contact is also guaranteed when a bottom surface of the positionlimiting plate abuts the surface of the cell phone 3 to which a film isto be attached. As shown in FIG. 2 , preferably, in the case that twoposition limiting plates 11 are adopted, each of the position limitingplates 11 is located at an edge of the through hole 10, and each of theposition limiting plates 11 covers a part of the through hole 10. As canbe seen from FIG. 3 , each of the position limiting plate 11 goes beyondan edge of the through hole 10 approximately by 1 to 3mm, so that anedge of the cell phone 3 abuts well against the position limiting plate11 and the region for film lamination is not affected.

On the basis of the above embodiment, further, a groove 20 for fixingthe cell-phone film 30 is provided on the film laminating plate 2, andis established on a face of the film laminating plate 2 for bonding withthe cell-phone fixing plate 1. In general, when the film laminatingplate 2 is bonded with the top surface of the cell-phone fixing plate 1,the groove 20 coincides with the through hole 10. Especially when thecell-phone film is stuck on the cell phone screen, the groove 20 and thethrough hole 10 are substantially equal in area. Of course, when thefilm is attached to the cell phone screen, the shape of the through hole10 is the same as the shape of profile of the cell phone 3, so that thecell phone 3 is firmly clamped within the through hole 10 on thecell-phone fixing plate 1.

On the basis of the above embodiment, further, the cell-phone film 30includes a first outer film, a primary film and a second outer film thatare stacked sequentially. A separating strip (not shown in the figure)is provided at an end of the first outer film, an end of the secondouter film is jointed to the film laminating plate, and an adheringsheet is arranged between the first outer film and the primary film.

As shown in FIG. 5 , after the cell-phone film 30 is fixed onto the filmlaminating plate 2, the first outer film is torn off by the aid of theseparating strip, and the film laminating plate 2 is bonded with the topsurface of the cell-phone fixing plate 1 after it has passed throughthree positions of A, B and C in sequence, so that the primary film isstuck on a surface of the cell phone 3 to which a film is to be attachedwith the adhering sheet. Subsequent to the film sticking, open the filmlaminating plate 2. As the second outer film is fixed onto the filmlaminating plate 2, the second outer film is automatically separatedfrom the primary film. Thus, the entire process of film lamination iscompleted.

On the basis of the above embodiment, further, the position limitingplate 11 is generally made of a hard plastic plate, preferably a PETboard, and its thickness is in the range of 0.1 to 0.5 mm. The filmlaminating plate 2 is usually also made of a hard material, and for thesake of reducing the cost, is preferably a hard paper board, and itsthickness is in the range of 0.5 to 1.5 mm. The cell-phone fixing plate1 is a hard paper board, and its thickness is in the range of 2.5 to 7mm. A hard paper board is usually made of multiple levels of hardpaperboard by pressing, so as to ensure a sufficient strength.Certainly, the used hard materials are each a thin plate or a sheetpossessing a certain hardness, such as a plastic board, a cardboardsandwich plate, or the like.

As shown in FIG. 6 , FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 , in another embodiment of theutility model, a film laminating plate 2 is usually a transparentconstruct. That is, in a practical application process, a transparentplastic substance or other transparent material with a certain hardnessis used for the film laminating plate 2. Because the film laminatingplate 2 is a transparent construct, in the entire process of filmlamination, an operator can visually inspect whether or not dust or airbubbles is/are present between a primary film and the surface of a cellphone to which a film is to be attached. Therefore, the success rate offilm lamination and the quality of film lamination are improved greatly.

On the basis of the above embodiment, further, an exhaust through hole25 is established on the film laminating plate 2, and communicates withthe bottom of a groove 20. The exhaust through hole 25 is generallydesigned to be in the center of the groove 20, and is usually in theshape of an oval or a long strip, and its size is usually subject toreceptibility of a thumb. The function of the exhaust through hole 25 isnot merely limited to such a function that the residual air between acell-phone film 30 and the film laminating plate 2 can be discharged byit, but also it can facilitate the operation. As shown in FIG. 8 , aftera primary film of the cell-phone film 30 is aligned with the surface ofa cell phone to which a film is to be attached, an operator presses acentral zone of the cell-phone film 30 via the exhaust through hole 25so that the central zone of the cell-phone film 30 is bonded firstly.Thus, bubbles are prevented from generating in the central zone, and theoperational quality is improved. It is to be noted that, when an opaquesubstance is used for the film laminating plate 2, the opaque substancetakes priority for establishment of the exhaust through hole 25 on itover others. As such, not only the cost can be saved, but also thequality of laminated film is improved greatly.

It is to be noted that, the technical solution of the embodiment is notlimited to the field of cell phones, rather, digital products such astablet computers, digital cameras, digital music players and the likeeach can adopt the solution of the utility model for film lamination. Ofcourse, the utility model is especially adapted for the sticking of ahard cell-phone film, such as, a glass film, a thin film of toughenedglass, a sapphire film, or the like.

Many of the latest portable electronic devices feature screens thatencompass almost the entire flat upper surface of the device, e.g. theiPhone X™. For these devices, the embodiments described thus far thatemploy position limiting plate(s) 11 are not optimal because theprotective film extends to the edges of the screen, and there may not bea portion of the device that the position limiting plates 11 can contactwithout blocking a portion of the screen. The embodiment shown in FIGS.9-11 addresses this issue. This embodiment features fixing plate 1,hinge 5, and protective film assembly 31. Protective film assembly 31 issimilar in structure to cell-phone film 30 described above, and is shownin detail in FIG. 10 . Protective film assembly 31 in this embodiment iscomprised of primary protective film 32, which is sandwiched between afirst covering layer 33 and second covering layer 34. Adhesive filmlayers 35 are comprised of releasable adhesives and bond the first andsecond covering layers to primary protective film 32 prior to it beingapplied to device 3′. Adhesive film layer 35 also facilitates thebonding of primary protective film 32 to the screen of device 3′. Theparticular embodiment shown in FIG. 10 is for use with PET andthermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) films. Other embodiments featuringtempered glass protectors or other materials having high scratchresistance do not utilize second covering layer 34 and adhesive layer35.

In this embodiment, the top of the device 3′ is not held in placerelative to the top surface of fixing plate 1 using position limitingplates 11. Instead, a supporting sidewall 4 extends downward from fixingplate 1 to a common surface supporting both fixing plate 1 and device3′. The height of sidewall 4 is such that the top surface of device 3′to which the film is to be applied is coplanar with the horizontal topsurface of fixing plate 1 when the device 3′ is placed on the supportingsurface, i.e., the top horizontal surface of fixing plate 1 is even withthe surface of the device to which the protective film is to be applied.In certain embodiments, sidewall 4 is continuous around device 3′ (i.e.completely surrounding device 3′); however, in other embodiments, theremay be one or more sidewalls 4. Fixing plate 1 and sidewall(s) 4 may bemade of injection-molded materials such as polycarbonate, acrylonitrilebutadiene styrene, polyvinyl chloride, polystyrene, acrylic, and thelike. Hinge 5 can be comprised of any flexible material such aspolyethylene or paper. In one certain embodiment, hinge 5 is a papersticker having a non-drying adhesive that attaches directly to theprimary protective film 32 as shown in FIG. 10 . The adhesive permitsthe hinge to be easily peeled off once the primary protective film 32has been applied to the device screen.

FIG. 9 is a side profile view of the embodiment showing hinge 5, one endof which is bonded to the horizontal top surface of fixing plate 1, andthe other end of which is bonded to protective film assembly 31,specifically to second covering layer 34. In certain embodiments,protective film assembly 31 does not have a second covering layer 34. Inthese embodiments, hinge 5 is bonded directly to primary protective film32 using adhesive that does not dry, such as that manufactured by 3MCorporation. This adhesive permits the entire applicator assembly to belifted away from the device once the primary protective film 32 isapplied to the screen.

The embodiment featuring sidewall 4 is used by first placing device 3′on a supporting surface. The embodiment is then placed over device 3′ sothat both are supported by the supporting surface. In thisconfiguration, the top of device 3′ and the horizontal top surface offixing plate 1 should at the same level, i.e. coplanar. The firstcovering layer 33 is then removed using a separating tab either firmlybonded to, or integral with, first covering layer 33. This exposesadhesive layer 35, which is brought into contact with the surface of thedevice's screen and which adheres primary protective film 32 thereto.Once primary protective film 32 is in place, the second covering layer34 is removed with the aid of a separating tab such that adhesive layer35 remains with the secondary covering layer 34.

With reference to the specific embodiments stated above, the objectives,technical solutions and beneficial effects of the utility model havebeen further explained in detail. It should be understood that,descriptions made above are merely specific embodiments of the utilitymodel, but are not used to limit the protective scope of the utilitymodel. All modifications, equivalent replacements, improvements or thelike, made within the spirit and principle of the utility model, shallbe embraced in the protective scope of the utility model.

What is claimed is:
 1. An apparatus for applying protective film to aportable electronic device having a defined planform, the portableelectronic device comprising a top surface and a plurality of devicesides having a defined side length, the apparatus comprising: a fixingplate characterized by two parallel fixing plate long edges and twoparallel fixing plate short edges, the two fixing plate long edgesdisposed perpendicularly to the two fixing plate parallel short edges,the fixing plate comprising: a first upper edge through hole in theshape of the defined planform, the hole comprising a plurality of edgescorresponding to each of the plurality of device sides; one or moresidewalls, each of the one or more sidewalls adapted to contact one ofthe plurality of device sides, wherein the sidewalls extend downwardlyfrom the edges of the through hole; and a film laminating platecharacterized by two parallel laminating plate long edges and twoparallel laminating plate short edges, wherein the length of the twolaminating plate long edges are substantially equal to the length of thetwo fixing plate long edges, and wherein the length of the twolaminating plate short edges are substantially equal to the length ofthe two fixing plate short edges, comprising: a second upper edge; ahinge adapted to permit a lower portion of the film laminating plate torotate away from the fixing plate; a groove recessed into a bottom sideof the film laminating plate, wherein the edges of the groove arecoincident with the edges of the fixing plate through hole; an exhausthole disposed in a bottom of the groove, wherein the exhaust holeextends through the film laminating plate to an opening on an upper sideof the film laminating plate; a protective film assembly comprising: aremovable protective sheet; and a protective film comprising: a firstside removably adhered to the bottom of the groove such that theprotective film covers the exhaust hole; and a second side that isadhered to the removable protective sheet wherein the first upper edgeis bonded to the second upper edge such that the fixing plate iscoincident with the film laminating plate.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1,wherein a length of the one or more sidewalls is such that the topsurface of the electronic device extends into the groove and contactsthe second side of the protective film.
 3. The apparatus of claim 1,wherein a length of the one or more sidewalls is such that the topsurface of the electronic device is even with the bottom side of thefilm laminating plate.